Writing

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Italicize the title of a long work → e.g. novel, play, film, epic poem, anthology (collection of short stories or poems), album, painting

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

When writing by hand, underline the title.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Use quotation marks for the title of a short work → e.g. poem, short story, article, song, episode of a TV series

“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry

When writing a person’s name, use his or her full name the first time you mention this person; afterwards, write his or her last name.

Use present tense when writing about a fiction work

However, use past tense for events that happened before a certain point in the story

In a formal essay, do NOT use:

Sentence starting with a conjunction (see page ___ for full list of conjunctions)

First-person and second-person pronouns

Numbers less than one hundred → sixty-four NOT 64

Contraction: a shortened version of words → e.g. it’s, can’t, doesn’t

Vary your vocabulary:

Use a thesaurus

Use synonyms, especially for words that are too broad or too elementary

AVOID using words that are vague; always be as specific as possible

Know the correct usage of the word:

Whether a word is a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb

Whether a noun is countable or uncountable

Whether a word is used in its literal definition or in a figurative manner:

Whether a word is used for its detonation, the dictionary definition, or for its connotation, an emotion or image associated with the word:

Make sure that you know which system of spelling you are using. You are free to use whichever system you are accustomed to, but be consistent throughout your writing.

Memorize synonyms of words that you usually prefer to use. Although there is no set vocabulary that will guarantee a higher language score, use words that contain the meaning that you intend to deliver and not be repetitive.

= sentence structure.

Vary the types of sentences you are using to control both rhythm and emphasis.

Since a simple sentence carries emphasis, write an important point as a simple sentence

If you have two relatively simple pieces of information, combine them into a compound sentence

Since the clause at the end often receives emphasis, place the most important clause at the end

Use a transition word or phrase to emphasize the relationship

Only use a transition if one is needed; avoid adding a transition in front of every sentence

These transition words and phrases should NOT replace a conjunction in a  compound sentence